Tag: Friends of Cheasty Greenspace

Looking to volunteer in a local park, plant native trees and shrubs, and get to know your neighbors? If so, then Green Seattle Day on November 6th from 10am-2pm is the event for you!
Green Seattle Day is the kick off to the Green Seattle Partnership planting season and is a celebration of our neighborhood parks and committed volunteers. On November 6th from 10am-2pm, 1,000 volunteers are expected to gather in 14 parks across Seattle to lend a hand in restoration. Interested volunteers can search for a local park and register on the Green Seattle Partnership Website: www.greenseattle.org.

You maybe thinking, “Why should I spend the day in a local park when I could be sitting on the couch watching TV?” Well, here are just a few reasons:
1. Green Seattle Day gives you they opportunity to take an active role in the restoration of your local park. More than that! You will get to name the plant you put in the ground and you can return and give your plant pep talks, or take photos as it grows throughout the years!

2.The day of volunteering will allow you to meet your neighbors and even make some new friends. We have found that pulling out ivy and planting trees are actions that bring out the friend making vibes in folks.

3. FREE STUFF! ohhh, now I have your attention. We are going to be giving out fancy Green Seattle Partnership t-shirts to all present volunteers and there will also be some other sweet giveaways at our hub sites, Lower Woodland Park and Camp Long. Not all sites have the same giveaways, but you will be greatly rewarded with a happy feeling inside no matter where you spend the day volunteering and having fun.

So! We would like to cordially invite you NO, challenge you to spend your Saturday morning on November 6th hanging out with GSP folks, planting trees, and making new friends. Find your local park and sign up for a work party (www.greenseattle.org) ! See you in the parks!!!

If you have any questions or would like to organize a group of volunteers for the event please contact Katie at katieca@cascadeland.org or 206-905-6952.

Like this:

Before 2008, the Cheasty Greenspace was a much different place than it is today. The park’s trees were being smothered by English Ivy, its open spaces were being filled in by dumping, and its dark trails regularly hosted an assortment of illicit activities. The early work of the Greenspace’s forest stewards, Mary DeJong and Andrea Ostrovsky, involved working with the Seattle Police Department to locate encampments and with volunteers to create survivor rings for hundreds of the park’s trees.

Today, the park feels safer. Sunlight, previously blocked by the dense overstory of ivy, now streams through the trees to welcome visitors who come to enjoy the Greenspace’s trails and natural beauty. This change is the result of the hard work of Cheasty’s neighbors, including Andrea and Mary – the restoration efforts devoted leaders.

The two met over their “passion for the need for safe forested parks in our urban neighborhoods within which ALL could safely enjoy and recreate.” They now host community work parties in the Greenspace on the first Saturday of every month. Volunteers, including a dedicated group from Seattle Pacific University, have cleared invasive species from over half of the site’s acreage. But they aren’t stopping at ivy removal.

Aside from the ongoing restoration at Cheasty, Mary and Andrea have a greater vision for their work. They see the Greenspace as a potential link between Beacon Hill’s Lockmore neighborhood and Columbia City. “How amazing would it be to walk in the woods to the Columbia City Light Rail Station en route to work downtown?” asks Mary. The value of adding natural areas to the morning commute is very clear. They also see Cheasty as a venue for the diverse and traditionally underserved Rainier Valley community to get outside and enjoy experiences in an urban wilderness.

The two are thankful for the support of the Green Seattle Partnership in helping them achieve their goals. Mary explained, “I am amazed that an organization exists to assist average citizens and impact change to this level.” They both encourage citizens of Seattle to “Get Involved!”